I had the pleasure of hearing R. C. Sproul speak at a few Together for the Gospel conferences over the years. He was a brilliant theologian and a personable man who could think deeply about Scripture, communicate truths with clarity verbally and in writing, and even make you laugh along the way. He was a treasure to the modern church. The Lord took him home in 2017, but his work continues through his many books, the ministries he founded, such as Ligonier Ministries, those he trained in theological studies, his service as General Editor of The Reformation Study Bible, countless YouTube videos, and the ripple effect of his life in those he impacted.

One of his most significant books, first published in 1985, is The Holiness of God. I am embarrassed to admit it took me until spring 2026 to read it, even though it sat on my bookshelf for years. Shame on me. I read the 25th-anniversary edition, published in 2010. A 40th-anniversary edition was released in 2025, with several other editions published along the way.

From the time God saved Sproul and throughout his faithful ministry, he was enthralled by the reality of God’s holiness and how far short we fall in living up to the biblical admonition to “Be holy, because I am holy” (Leviticus 11:44). He wrote, “I am sure that the reason I have a deep hunger to learn of the holiness of God is precisely because I am not holy” (p. 41). The Holiness of God, therefore, is an important work that can help the reader better (though not fully) grasp God’s holiness and be challenged to live in awe of our holy God while seeking, albeit imperfectly, to be conformed to the image of Christ.

The book’s opening chapter, “The Holy Grail,” is largely an autobiographical account of his conversion and his subsequent interest in God’s holiness. From there, other chapters include:

• “Holy, Holy, Holy” – A look at some of the many passages that describe God as holy.
• “The Fearful Mystery” – What it means to be holy.
• “The Trauma of Holiness” – Biblical instances where the holy God encountered sinful men and their reactions.
• “The Insanity of Luther” – Accounts from Martin Luther’s life, whose “legal mind was haunted by the question, How can an unjust person survive in the presence of a just God?” (p. 108).
• “Holy Justice” – Making sense of some of the most difficult passages in the Old Testament in light of “four vitally important biblical concepts: holiness, justice, sin, and grace” (p. 131). This is where we find the great quote: “Sin is cosmic treason” (p. 140).
• “War and Peace with a Holy God” – Biblical accounts of several who struggled with God and made peace with him: Jacob, Job, Habakkuk, and Saul of Tarsus.
• “Be Holy Because I Am Holy” – Just as the New Testament refers to believers as saints, we are to live lives set apart as holy to God, growing in righteousness through the lifelong process of sanctification.
• “God in the Hands of Angry Sinners” – Unlike the truths in Jonathan Edwards’ famous sermon, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” our culture attempts to remake God into the image we want Him to be—loving and mercify but never wrathful.
• “Looking Beyond Shadows” – “To get to the truth, one must get beyond the immediate realm of sense perception to the eternal realm of ultimate reality” (p. 233). All that is good, true, and beautiful points us to the holiness of God.
• “Holy Space and Holy Time” – Ways in which God’s holiness touches space and time.

Unlike many theological books, The Holiness of God ends each chapter with a few questions for further reflection, discussion, or journaling. That’s a nice touch, especially if reading through the book with others.

The print editions of The Holiness of God come in different physical sizes and formats, but most are about 250 pages. Kindle and audio editions are also available, as are various study aids, such as study guides. The small-size 25th-anniversary edition I read, published by Ligonier Ministries, has 265 pages before the end notes. It’s a fairly quick read due its small page size size, although the subject matter deserves thoughtful, unhurried attention.

God’s holiness may seem like a subject beyond our reach to understand. That is true in that we can’t fully grasp all that it means, but we can learn and cherish what God has revealed in His Word on the subject. Sproul’s The Holiness of God can help the reader move forward in unserstanding His holiness. It is hard to imagine a genuine believer reading this book without being humbled, educated, challenged, and moved by God’s holiness and the fact that we can know and love Him, and that He knows and loves us. This is a book worth reading periodically throughout our lifelong journey of faith. Perhaps you will want to do that until the glorious day when you stand in His presence and cry, “Holy! Holy! Holy!”